A record number of people are going to medical school, according to the latest numbers from the Association of American Medical Colleges, but all those students could face a problem when they graduate: a lack of openings for residencies, which they typically need to become doctors.
Last fall, 20,343 students began their first year of medical school, more than in any other year, and up 23 percent from 2002, the AAMC reported last week. That should be welcome news for the doomsayers who have warned medical schools they need to enroll more students or face a shortage of physicians. Indeed, medical schools may close in on a goal of boosting enrollment by 30 percent from 2002 levels within a handful of years, the AAMC says.
